A few months ago my friend, Steve, asked me if I had seen “Meet The Press” the day before. I responded that I limited myself to This Week. The reason being that I really didn’t have time to watch all three of the major network’s Sunday morning shows and since I didn’t care much for Tim Russert’s style, he didn’t make the cut.
Within milliseconds of the end of that exchange I thought about what I had said. Did I really not like Tim Russert’s style?
Al Franken, whose last three books I have read, was very critical of Russert. I can’t even remember exactly why beyond the fact that he didn’t care for what he considered his mock bewildered style of delivering follow-up questions. I also recall that Franken was not happy with the way Russert structured his questions to Bush administration officials during the time leading up to and just after the Iraq invasion.
The truth is I consider myself to always be about ten years behind where I should be in my maturity. An indication of this would be my willingness to agree with Al Franken simply because he was the first to really open my eyes to the facts behind the corruption in the Bush administration. Simply put since I believed he was right about one thing, without thinking about it, he must be right about everything.
More truth be told, Franken also has an interest in being funny so he probably wasn’t near as perturbed with Tim Russert as his satire seemed.
Within milliseconds of the question I asked myself, I answered myself, ” I have absolutely no problem with Tim Russert.”
I began recording Meet The Press again. Schedule be damned.
It is an interesting confluence of events that I was watching a golf tournament with my father while my two-year –old son wandered about when Tom Brokaw broke in with a special report to say that Russert had died suddenly.
Golf is not something I generally enjoy watching. In fact, I seldom watch it unless my dad is present. During those times I watch it without him, I’m thinking about him while I’m watching. I only enjoy golf as a connection to my father. My guess is just as many people ,maybe more, know about Tim Russert because of his books about and his devotion to his father and son as know about his influence on political news reporting.
It was a fitting way to learn the news.
I began thinking, “This is too much.” But then I decided to give all these reporters slack when I realized that almost all of them on all these different stations had either, at one time, been hired by Tim Russert or had worked with him.
These were human beings in shock over the loss of a truly beloved coworker who happened to be reporters. It was an indulgence…yes, but what other way could they be expected to act out their grief?
As opposed to overreaction to other stories, this seemed somehow appropriate.
As for me, I cannot claim to have been intelligent enough to realize what kind of power and influence Tim Russert had. Everything I realized about him I have only realized in retrospect.
I realized that his face was one of the ones that appeared in my mind whenever I heard the word “mensch”.
I realized that as I would watch the primary coverage, over the last five months, that I would have to record due to performances, auditions or rehearsals, I would sometimes have to fast forward to ensure that I would get at least a little sleep.
I would always stop to listen when Tim came on the screen.
Along with that, it is a morbid admission on my part that since 9/11, I almost always keep the T.V. on a 24 hour news network with the sound down while I’m home. During those times that the network happens to be MSNBC, if Tim Russert came on—and I believe this is the greatest compliment a simple television viewer can pay to him--, I would turn the sound up.
If you would have caught me doing it at the time and asked me why I was suddenly interested, I wouldn’t have said, “because he’s the NBC Washington Bureau chief, or that he was a vice-president of news or even because he was a powerful voice.” I wouldn’t have said it, because I didn’t really know any of that.
What I knew was that he was from Buffalo, NY. That he loved the Bills and the Sabres. That he loved his father and his son. And that he hosted Meet The Press. None of this alone but maybe all of it together plus something more-- but also intangible-- would have contributed to my answer.
I think all I would have said is,” I like listening to what he has to say.”
Goodbye, Tim Russert. Thank you for loving your family. Thank you for loving your hometown. Thank you for the subtle way you added to my understanding of politics.
J.A.L.
Within milliseconds of the end of that exchange I thought about what I had said. Did I really not like Tim Russert’s style?
Al Franken, whose last three books I have read, was very critical of Russert. I can’t even remember exactly why beyond the fact that he didn’t care for what he considered his mock bewildered style of delivering follow-up questions. I also recall that Franken was not happy with the way Russert structured his questions to Bush administration officials during the time leading up to and just after the Iraq invasion.
The truth is I consider myself to always be about ten years behind where I should be in my maturity. An indication of this would be my willingness to agree with Al Franken simply because he was the first to really open my eyes to the facts behind the corruption in the Bush administration. Simply put since I believed he was right about one thing, without thinking about it, he must be right about everything.
More truth be told, Franken also has an interest in being funny so he probably wasn’t near as perturbed with Tim Russert as his satire seemed.
Within milliseconds of the question I asked myself, I answered myself, ” I have absolutely no problem with Tim Russert.”
I began recording Meet The Press again. Schedule be damned.
It is an interesting confluence of events that I was watching a golf tournament with my father while my two-year –old son wandered about when Tom Brokaw broke in with a special report to say that Russert had died suddenly.
Golf is not something I generally enjoy watching. In fact, I seldom watch it unless my dad is present. During those times I watch it without him, I’m thinking about him while I’m watching. I only enjoy golf as a connection to my father. My guess is just as many people ,maybe more, know about Tim Russert because of his books about and his devotion to his father and son as know about his influence on political news reporting.
It was a fitting way to learn the news.
It was also far too soon.
Later that night, after the day’s personal events, I turned on the T.V. back in my hotel room to find that CNN and MSNBC were doing “wall to wall coverage” on the death of Russert. NBC did a one-hour special during the final primetime hour on his life hosted by Tom Brokaw. Even Fox News never wandered too far from the story.
Later that night, after the day’s personal events, I turned on the T.V. back in my hotel room to find that CNN and MSNBC were doing “wall to wall coverage” on the death of Russert. NBC did a one-hour special during the final primetime hour on his life hosted by Tom Brokaw. Even Fox News never wandered too far from the story.
I began thinking, “This is too much.” But then I decided to give all these reporters slack when I realized that almost all of them on all these different stations had either, at one time, been hired by Tim Russert or had worked with him.
These were human beings in shock over the loss of a truly beloved coworker who happened to be reporters. It was an indulgence…yes, but what other way could they be expected to act out their grief?
As opposed to overreaction to other stories, this seemed somehow appropriate.
As for me, I cannot claim to have been intelligent enough to realize what kind of power and influence Tim Russert had. Everything I realized about him I have only realized in retrospect.
I realized that his face was one of the ones that appeared in my mind whenever I heard the word “mensch”.
I realized that as I would watch the primary coverage, over the last five months, that I would have to record due to performances, auditions or rehearsals, I would sometimes have to fast forward to ensure that I would get at least a little sleep.
I would always stop to listen when Tim came on the screen.
Along with that, it is a morbid admission on my part that since 9/11, I almost always keep the T.V. on a 24 hour news network with the sound down while I’m home. During those times that the network happens to be MSNBC, if Tim Russert came on—and I believe this is the greatest compliment a simple television viewer can pay to him--, I would turn the sound up.
If you would have caught me doing it at the time and asked me why I was suddenly interested, I wouldn’t have said, “because he’s the NBC Washington Bureau chief, or that he was a vice-president of news or even because he was a powerful voice.” I wouldn’t have said it, because I didn’t really know any of that.
What I knew was that he was from Buffalo, NY. That he loved the Bills and the Sabres. That he loved his father and his son. And that he hosted Meet The Press. None of this alone but maybe all of it together plus something more-- but also intangible-- would have contributed to my answer.
I think all I would have said is,” I like listening to what he has to say.”
Goodbye, Tim Russert. Thank you for loving your family. Thank you for loving your hometown. Thank you for the subtle way you added to my understanding of politics.
…And Go, you Buffalo Bills!
J.A.L.
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